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UK officials have dismissed claims that a deportation deal with France is in chaos, after plans to send back people crossing the Channel via small boats were postponed for a second time.

Questioned by reporters whether the recent postponement meant the much-discussed “reciprocal” agreement was “chaotic,” a official for the prime minister stated, “Not at all.”

This statement came after return trips scheduled for Monday and Tuesday to return individuals denied refuge to Paris were canceled. Sources suggest that further attempts have been arranged for the coming days, with a government source indicating that the opening transfer is anticipated to take off in the coming days.

Under the “exchange-based” experimental agreement, UK authorities are expected to hold migrants who cross the Channel and send them back to France, in return receiving an refugee applicant in France who can demonstrate they have relatives in Britain.

The agreement was announced in recent months by the UK Prime Minister and his French counterpart. During a joint press conference, the prime minister stated: “There is no quick fix here, but with a united effort, new tactics, and a stronger resolve, we can finally make progress.”

Complicating matters, France’s government have indicated that the agreement could be scrapped if it is not working effectively.

The government clarified that it would take in only a small number of migrants initially, highlighting the “strictly trial nature of this deal.”

An insider within the French government told news agencies: “It is possible that we will end the agreement if we consider it satisfactory.”

Sources indicate that the British officials is dealing with a range of difficulties related to the vulnerability of many of the migrants in custody in advance of removal, a significant number of whom are survivors of torture and trafficking.

At the start of the week, two flights were due to carry a small number of asylum seekers to Paris, but the flights were cancelled at the final moment.

Believed that several people due to fly had lodged rejected petitions against return, but remained in the UK due to issues expressed by French authorities that the UK side had not supplied adequate notice of the vulnerabilities of some individuals, for example victims of trafficking and torture.

As per the agreement signed between the UK and France last month, the UK is required to notify France in a statement “indicating that the person to be transferred might require medical assistance or care.”

The Guardian is aware of an instance in which a petition filed by an individual asylum seeker who was due to fly on Monday was unsuccessful. He was held in a isolated section of the immigration center but was released to his room in the early hours of Monday and notified that he would remain in the UK after all.

Advocacy groups have reported several people who had been notified of deportation for Monday, one individual with removal directions for Tuesday, and at least two people with removal directions for Wednesday. Representatives say it is not known why the person with removal directions for Tuesday had their ticket cancelled.

The government in Paris has suggested it will take in only a limited number of transfers of approximately 50 individuals, while the UK has announced it intends to increase numbers over the course of the scheme in an bid to halt small boat crossings in the Channel.

The acting director of the advocacy group commented: “The arrangement with France is letting down people in need of protection at all levels. Individuals and families are coming from Afghanistan, Palestine, Syria, and other nations, seeking our protection, only to be confined to overcrowded facilities and refused assistance they urgently need. The government’s immigration lead must alter strategy.”

Roughly 31,026 people have crossed the Channel so far this year, making 2025 on course to be a historic high for migrant arrivals.